Old Numbskull
(has 4 batches)
AleSmith Brewing Company in San Diego, California, United States 🇺🇸
Barley Wine - Barley Rotating|
Score
7.90
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Bottle conditioned.
Caramel and toffee notes abound in this deep copper-colored American Barleywine-style but alongside toasted malt and a hint of ripe dark fruits. Old Numbskull showcases malt sweetness, intense American hops, and an aggressive bitterness. Extremely well-balanced, the full-bodied mouthfeel and assertive hop profile leads into a deceptively smooth finish. Old Numbskull can be enjoyed now or laid down for years to come.
Caramel and toffee notes abound in this deep copper-colored American Barleywine-style but alongside toasted malt and a hint of ripe dark fruits. Old Numbskull showcases malt sweetness, intense American hops, and an aggressive bitterness. Extremely well-balanced, the full-bodied mouthfeel and assertive hop profile leads into a deceptively smooth finish. Old Numbskull can be enjoyed now or laid down for years to come.
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7.8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 8
2012 Vintage. 75 cl. bottle sampled @ RBBWG 2014. Courtesy of & thx! to JefVerstraete. Touch murky fox amber with little head. Nose is surprisingly hoppy, lots of hops, flowers, bitter with some caramel & brown sugar in the background. Nose is very hop bitter upfront, flowers, bitter herbs, touch grass, thick caramel malts in the back, sweeter backbone, touch nuts. Touch higher carb. Too much hops for me, not bad but not really my thing. I’m not into hoppy barley wines, I don’t get the concept, I do suppose they survive better that way. I would have probably liked it more, had it been aged a couple of years in order to get rind of the hops. I am still not a AleSmith fanboy unlike everyone else it seems.
Tried
from Bottle
on 19 Jan 2014
at 04:33
8.6/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 9
Flavor 9
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
Imported from my RateBeer account as AleSmith Old Numbskull (by AleSmith Brewing Company):
Aroma: 9/10, Appearance: 4/5, Taste: 9/10, Palate: 4/5, Overall: 17/20, MyTotalScore: 4.3/5
18/I/14 - 75cl bottle from Geers (Oostakker) @ RBBWG III, my place - BB: n/a (2014-90) Thanks to JefVerstraete for sharing the bottle!
Clear red amber beer, irregular beige small head, unstable, bit adhesive. Aroma: bubble gum, pretty hoppy, exotic fruits, mango, bit sweet, honey, sugary touch, caramel. MF: ok carbon, full body. Taste: sweet start, malty, caramel, honey, nice hops, fruity, citrus, sugary, some passion fruits, mango. Nice complex and very fruity barley wine!
Aroma: 9/10, Appearance: 4/5, Taste: 9/10, Palate: 4/5, Overall: 17/20, MyTotalScore: 4.3/5
18/I/14 - 75cl bottle from Geers (Oostakker) @ RBBWG III, my place - BB: n/a (2014-90) Thanks to JefVerstraete for sharing the bottle!
Clear red amber beer, irregular beige small head, unstable, bit adhesive. Aroma: bubble gum, pretty hoppy, exotic fruits, mango, bit sweet, honey, sugary touch, caramel. MF: ok carbon, full body. Taste: sweet start, malty, caramel, honey, nice hops, fruity, citrus, sugary, some passion fruits, mango. Nice complex and very fruity barley wine!
Tried
from Bottle
on 18 Jan 2014
at 12:01
7.8/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 9
Bottle at RBWG14 Smell is very sweet grainy . Some sugar Taste is bit bitter, sweet, malty and grainy . Touch of booze . Carbonation is perfect . Nice one !
Tried
from Bottle
on 18 Jan 2014
at 06:11
7.8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
2013 bottle. Poured a caramel, dark brown color with a tan head. Aroma was sweet malts, barley wine grains, alcohol booze. Caramel, candi, with a touch of wood and a dab of citrus. Flavor was boozy, sweet malts, grain, caramel, citrus. Boozy. Pretty easy to drink.
Tried
from Bottle
on 03 Jan 2014
at 22:12
7/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 6
11% 3250 yen bottle from Tanakaya, shared with David. A beautiful honey amber with a thin beige head. Barleywine aroma, caramel, toffee & hops. Smooth, silky, creamy mouthfeel, malty sweet caramel with some pine/citrus hop notes. Decent but not worth that high price.
Tried
from Bottle
on 28 Dec 2013
at 19:50
8.8/10
—
Appearance 10
Aroma 7
Flavor 9
Texture 10
Overall 9
0.75l bottle. A bit hazy dark orange body, light brown head. The aroma is mostly citrusy hoppy, but it also has some caramel and a hint of toastyness to it. The taste is more complex. It has lots of caramel and citrusy hops with toast and roasted malts. It’s very sweet, but it also has a nice bitterness. Medium/full bodied with an oily texture. Awesome beer.
Tried
from Bottle
on 21 Dec 2013
at 11:58
7.2/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 8
Bottle sampled at a tasting. From notes. Boozy with a decent bit of smoke, dark fermented fruit and vanilla with caramel. Very good.
Tried
from Bottle
on 14 Oct 2013
at 21:03
9.9/10
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Appearance 10
Aroma 10
Flavor 10
Texture 10
Overall 9.5
dark amber/ruby colour, 1-2 cm yellowish creamy head, which lasts for minutes, which is surprisingly long in the light of the style and high ABV; extremely complex aroma of caramel, figs, honey, pine resin, floral-grassy hops and minimal liqueur; taste is also far from being simple: sweet and bitter in parallel - honey, herbal liqueur, pine resin, hoppy bitterness with slight citrusy notes, caramel...and cool bitter aftertaste; definitely the best barley wine I have ever tasted, and one of the best beers, too; I love it! It’s just incredibly complex and amazing.
Tried
on 20 Sep 2013
at 12:55
8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
1 pt 9.4 fl oz (750ml) bottle. Clear bright coppery amber colour, foamy biege head that retains and aroma of caramel, orange, pine fruity hop. Taste is sweet malt caramel with floral orange, nutty woody pine and a spicey hop bitterness. Oily mouth feel, medium to full bodied, soft carbonation, warming dry lingering bitter finish. Nicely balanced and very drinkable.
Tried
from Bottle
on 17 Aug 2013
at 13:58
8.4/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 9
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
Bottle, Brew Dog Shop. Good lookin’ dark amber pour with a restrained off white-head. Sweet malts and fruits in the nose, alongside some hoppage and wood notes. Cracking balance in the flavour. Rich and creamy mouthfeel with the booze skillfully smothered. Slipped down an absolute treat and drank nowhere near its strength. Stonking stuff.
Tried
from Bottle
on 07 Aug 2013
at 15:08